Summary: Tori and Jade start their new life together.

Special Note: Many thanks again to Loganx5 for going over this and passing along numerous suggestions to improve the story. Logan, I really appreciate your help and the improvements you suggested. Hope I did your ideas justice. To all others, any typos, continuity gaps or other problems are all mine so blame me.

Part 9

The Epilogue

Summary: Tori and Jade start their new life together.

Tori rolled out onto their veranda to find Jade sitting on one of the poolside lounge chairs, her attention focused on her pad as she pecked at the screen. Jade was editing the script for her latest film - a new horror movie, her sixth since college, that she was producing as well.

"Hey, Jade?" No reaction. "Jade, there's a tsunami on the way and it'll wipe us out. Did you hear about the aliens that returned to Roswell to find their friends? I decided to let my pubic hair grow back. We were selected to join the first group to colonize the Moon. The Titanic finally arrived in New York, only one hundred and seventeen years late with no explanation. Godzilla is fighting Gamera and they're heading this way…"

Still nothing from Jade. Tori gave it one more try.

"They're doing a musical version of The Scissoring on Broadway."

"WHAT!?" Jade shouted in exasperation as she glared at Tori. "What do you want?"

"Good, you haven't gone deaf!"

"What the hell, Tori? You know I have to have the revisions back to the studio people by Monday."

"And it's only Thursday."

"So?"

"So I thought we could…" Tori wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"What about Jori and Mina?"

"They're on a playdate with little Carly at Cat and Sam's place in Oxnard. Remember?"

"Oh. Oh yeah…" Jade looked at her wife with a wicked gleam. "What might you have cogitating in that dirty mind of yours?"

"Come with me and see…" Tori said in a low, seductive voice.

Jade set her tablet aside and followed Tori, saying, "By the way. Gamera would never meet Godzilla. Godzilla is owned by Toho Pictures and Gamera is now owned by Kodakowa Pictures…"

"Whatever, Jade. Come and have fun with me…"

Later, as Jade held her woman, said woman commented, "We've come a long way, baby."

Jade's reply was whispered into Tori's soft hair. "You said it, Vega."

Their sweaty, naked bodies practically fused together, Jade and Tori did something Jade had always claimed she hated – they reminisced. But Jade spoke almost as much as Tori as they remembered their college years and the success all of them had enjoyed. Tori teared up again as the wonderful memories returned...

Mason had been as good as his word and Tori did launch her first album shortly after graduation from Hollywood Arts. Pre-release buzz was heavy, thanks to Mason's incredible PR machine, and, seemingly, the entire nation wanted to see what a paraplegic singer could do.

Most of them would have to wait.

Caused by, and helping with, the buzz was an upswing in YouTube views of Tori's PMA performance as well has her less than stellar national anthem performance.

The small West Coast tour was a total sell out – Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Carmel, San Francisco, Sacramento and Phoenix. With Tori's agreement, additional shows in Reno and, as the last stop, Las Vegas were added.

The first show was at a small, popular club in Santa Monica. The entire gang was there along with David and Holly. Mason hated being among the masses so he sent two of his people along on the tour so he could get reports on how well it went.

The club had a bar along one wall with booths along the other and tables in between. It was roomy and nearly full. It was an all-ages show so the bartenders were being extra vigilant scanning IDs. Even if someone got an adult stamp on entry.

Jade was backstage with Tori and peeked out from the wing of the small stage. "Looks like a good crowd, Vega. Your parents, Beck and Trina are at one of the front tables, the others are at a table next to them. And there are Alex and Juliet, coming in now."

Tori and Jade had found they enjoyed the company of the New York transplants. They had gotten together several times since Tori left the hospital – often double-dating and, just as often, simply hanging at the girls' apartment where Tori didn't feel like the object of everyone's attention.

"You've practically got a full house."

"Yeah, all to see the singing cripple," Tori replied in a low voice.

"You stop that!" Jade snapped as she turned back to her girlfriend. "Do not say that again! You just go out there and wow them with your voice!"

And Tori did just that, albeit reluctantly at first. "Jade, I'm so nervous. My butterflies have butterflies…"

"God Vega, can you use another worn out cliché?" The dark-haired girl knelt next the the chair and hugged Tori. "You'll be sensational! Now go." Jade's voice sounded more like her old HA voice, "Do not prove me wrong!"

The crowd loved the show. And they loved Tori. She ended up doing two encores and still they wanted more.

The next day, in a relatively small article in the entertainment section of the LA Times, her performance was lauded. The writer also made a point of her handicap as he acknowledged Tori's courage as a paraplegic. But the majority of the short write-up was about her voice and performance.

Several independent papers had longer, glowing reviews. And all but one praised her courage. The lone paper, a fringe freebie that specialized in conspiracy nonsense, claimed the wheelchair was a publicity stunt.

Jade dutifully saved every one of the reviews – even the fringe piece - as she would do throughout the tour. And their future.

Before she cut the papers up, Jade read aloud all that she could find and threw herself on Tori in bed, kissing her deeply. "See? They love you!"

"What about the one where I'm just pulling a fast one?"

"Yeah, well, these asshats are sure Elvis is on the midnight shift at a 7-11 in Michigan and Bigfoot will inherit the Earth."

She made Tori get in her chair and come downstairs. Holly had made breakfast for everyone and they all sat and took turns again reading the reviews to Tori who sat there with a happy smile.

Other than Jade, who scoffed as she had read it, the rest only read excerpts from the conspiracy article. They wanted to spare Tori, who, they felt, didn't need to hear that this early in her tour. But Jade loved to tease and read the entire article. Then, to be fair, she read one that purported Princess Kate was a clone of Princess Di, her late mother-in-law, and another about C.H.U.D.s in the LA sewer system.

Starting the next day, Jade accompanied Tori on her short tour. Clubs like the one in Santa Monica were Tori's predominant venue on this trip. The next show was in San Luis Obispo, near the university and brought a large crowd of college students. Carmel, where she performed in the outdoor patio with the ocean as a backdrop, was another success with the artsy crowd.

Then Tori, Jade and the band arrived in San Francisco.

In their hotel on a hill looking down over the city by the Bay, Jade asked, "Remember when we were watching Ironside and wondering how Raymond Burr kept from losing control of his chair on the hills?"

"Yeeesss…" Tori answered warily. Jade still had a wicked sense of humor.

"You wanna see if you could control yourself?" Jade smiled to show she was teasing. Tori didn't catch her expression.

"No! Definitely not! Don't even joke about that Jade!"

Seeing the trace of fear in Tori's eyes, Jade immediately regretted the poor taste joke, just as a stab of guilt at how she used to treat the budding pop star added to her anguish. She knelt next to the wheelchair and grasped Tori's hand. "I'm sorry, Tori. I never meant… I'd never hurt you. You know that."

"I do, Jade. I'm sorry. I know you were just teasing but I'm nervous."

"About tonight?" Tori nodded. "There's no reason to be that way. You killed them in the other shows. You will again tonight."

And. again, Jade was proved right. That night, as with every night after a show, Tori and Jade spent several sweaty hours in bed, pleasuring each other until they were worn out. Performing turned Tori on and Jade couldn't be happier about that.

Every new town, every show, Tori was nervous and ready to call it all off. And Jade was always there to console, cajole or, once, threaten Tori (with flat tires on her chair) to get her girl to go on stage.

Each show was a success and the writeups the next day were all positive and some even glowing with praise for the brave young woman who captured her audiences' hearts.

The last three stops of the trip were equally successful for the singer's growing rep. She received standing ovations at the end of each performance.

And Jade had a blast in Reno and Vegas. As she had watched Tori on stage, now Tori watched her play poker. Jade cleared nearly ten thousand dollars in Reno and another eighteen thousand in Las Vegas. All the winnings were deposited in her Bank of America account as soon as the nearest branch opened the morning after.

"Too bad Hammer Time isn't allowed," Jade mused, causing Tori to laugh. Jade often tried to get Tori to laugh – she absolutely loved how it sounded.

Back home, they were welcomed by the Vegas and Beck, who was at the Vega home almost as much as Jade. After everyone gushed over how big a hit Tori was becoming, Beck and Trina sprang their news.

"Tori, I'm sorry to tell you this when you just got back from such a great tour," Trina said. "I mean this is your moment and all but…"

Jade and Tori looked at each other – Trina apologized for something! Not knowing what else to say, Tori replied, "It's okay. What…"

"Beck asked me to marry him!" Trina exclaimed. "And I said yes!"

Tori was ecstatic for her sister and her soon-to-be brother-in-law. Jade was thrilled as well, both by the news and that the attention was off her Tori for the first time in days.

Jade loved Beck and had come to love Trina as well and was thrilled that they were finally making the commitment.

As a result, she slowly started to make her own plans…

Eventually, college ended for the entire gang. Their college degrees, combined with various internships, did them credit and their high school work at Hollywood Arts was an additional bonus.

Cat graduated with a BA with honors in Set and Costume Design. She had done most of the work for the school's productions her last two years in school as well as helping Jade with her projects. Her adviser wrangled some interviews for internships with Paramount, Universal and Warner Brothers. Soon, she was under contract with Universal and was on her way.

Beck had some uncredited bit parts in a couple of movies as well as bigger roles in college stage productions. Just before graduation, he auditioned for a credited walk-on role in a new TV show for Fox. Within two years, he had larger roles in three movies and a semi-regular role as the oldest son in an ABC Family comedy-drama. He then scored a significant one-shot role in a new TV series being filmed in Montreal. It happened to coincide with some free time for the newest Mrs. Oliver and the two went to Canada as a mini-vacation – albeit a working vaca for Beck.

Trina, with her husband's help, realized she had no future in singing. She turned to acting and got a coach outside of school. This bolstered the training she got in high school and especially college. As a result, she actually secured some acting gigs before Beck – commercials admittedly but that had been a good starting point for a lot of actors over the years. She had stayed in touch with her Divertisimo contacts long after that show closed, and got a supporting role in a telenovela. She played the character straight with just a touch of exaggeration. Before the first season was over, hers was one of the most popular characters on the network, much less the show.

Robbie had honed his comedic talents – sans Rex - and had been making the rounds of the comedy clubs in the Southland and even down to San Diego. He was offered positions with the Groundlings as well as Second City in Chicago. Opting to stay close to home initially, he was soon established himself with the LA troupe.

Andre was the only one who didn't finish college. Shortly after his sophomore year started, Sean Quincy took him under his wing and the singer/songwriter was soon working with some of the biggest names at Quincy Music. He had two albums out within as many years with hit songs from each album. As often as he could, he had Tori do some backup singing on his songs. She had to be uncredited due to her commitment to Mason but the industry was aware and her rep continued to grow.

Jade had made a few student films. One short student film, based on her play Well Wishes, was sent to Sundance by her professor/advisor and she took Tori to the festival. Her movie, while not a highlight, was well-received and she was approached by reps from a couple of studios. She also got to meet Eli Roth, one of her favorite gorn film creators. Through Roth, she actually got some significant face time with Quentin Tarantino. Preliminary talks started about them backing one of her movies.

Tori got twin degrees in Music and Education. She managed to release two more albums through Neutronium, recording them intermittently between terms and even got some weekend studio time. Her stipulation was nothing near midterms or finals. She also went on tour after her freshman and junior years. Both were more extensive than the first tour. And she was playing bigger venues. By the third tour, Tori finally admitted to Jade thar she was finally coming to accept what everyone was telling her – people were there to see her sing, not to stare at the girl in the wheelchair.

Finally came the moment Jade had started planning almost five years before.

After the last show in New York, Jade took Tori up to the Observation Deck of the Empire State Building. It was nearly midnight and Manhattan was laid out in all its nighttime glory below them. Jade wheeled Tori around the tower so they could see the entire view – Brooklyn and Queens with Long Island beyond to the east, then the darker expanse of Central Park framed by the city grid of streets from the north vista, New Jersey across the black band of the Hudson to the west and then the south vista.

They stopped and looked down at the towers of midtown below them and to the older buildings that rose above the Battery. The bridges to Brooklyn looked like strings of pearls spanning the darkness of the East River. Beyond Battery Park was the dark expanse of Upper New York Harbor and the few ships moving across the waters with the Statue of Liberty beautifully underlit beyond. Past that, the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was a silver thread far to the south, linking Staten Island with Brooklyn.

"It's beautiful, Jade," Tori sighed in wonder.

"Almost as beautiful as you," Jade whispered as she knelt next to Tori.

Tori looked at Jade questioningly. Jade pulled out her surprise, knelt in front of Tori and simply asked, "Victoria Vega, will you marry me?"

Tori pulled Jade into a bone-crushing, suffocating hug and yelled, "YES!"

"Woof!" Jade puffed out. "You've been taking hugging lessons from Cat! You've…"

Tori shut her woman up by kissing Jade.

Oblivious to the clapping of the few night owls on the Observation Deck, the two continued tp kiss atop the iconic tower before returning to their room to call everyone out west with the happy news.

In the time since their engagement and marriage – a simple ceremony in the Vegas' backyard - Jade had managed to get two Golden Globe nominations, as well as winning a People's Choice Award. She'd even received an Academy Award nomination. All rarities for horror movies.

During the same period, Tori had added to her musical library with seven more albums and two Grammy wins, three People's Choice and four Nickelodeon Kids' Choice nominations

"You didn't even cry as much at the 9-11 Memorial," Jade teased. In reality, both of them were severely choked up when they visited the site and museum the morning after Jade popped the question.

"Okay, maybe so, But who would've thought the stoic, hardcore Goth of Hollywood Arts would cry when she finally got to hold our little girls," Tori said, a hitch in her voice as she and Jade teared up at the happiest accomplishment of their lives.

"Our little girls," Jade whispered of their adopted daughters. The last piece of the lives Tori and Jade were blessed with.

The oldest, Jori, was a little, unnamed Puerto Rican orphan less than four months old when they met her for the first time in the San Juan orphanage nearly ten years before. When they couldn't agree on a name – each wanted to name the girl for their own grandmother – Cat suggested Jori. It was the tabloid short-hand name for Tori and Jade.

Three years later, they adopted a Romanian orphan immediately after Tori's first European tour. It happily was timed to match Jade's location scouting in the Transylvanian Alps.

To Jade's happy surprise, when they left Bucharest to meet the little girl for the first time, they found themselves in an orphanage in Cluj-Napoca, the largest city in Romania's Transylvania region. As with Jori, it was love at first sight for the young mothers. Jade insisted she be named Mina after the heroine of Bram Stoker's classic novel. Tori agreed as she thought it was a lovely name for their beautiful new daughter.

"Our little miracles," Tori whispered before Jade kissed her wife tenderly and with a heart full of love for her woman and their family.

And, as always when they thought back on their lives, they quietly shared a good, happy cry over their good fortune. All due to a near tragedy that caused the couple to open their eyes to what was always there before them.